The Mapped Atmosphere-Plant-Soil System (MAPSS) computer model written by Dr. Ron Neilson predicts the distribution of natural plant communities across North America. It is important to understand what vegetation originally existed on a site in order to determine how much change has occurred, and whether that change is degrading the ecosystem. In order to validate those predictions this project will use satellite data of vegetation cover at the NTSG lab as measured by Leaf Area Index derived from the daily polar orbiting Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR). We translate the AVHRR data into a Normalized Difference Vegetation Index specific to various biome types. Maps of the entire continental United States at 1km resolution will be compared. This study will improve our capability for national vegetation change detection studies, and provide important insight for locating areas of environmental degradation.

Funding: U.S.D.A. Forest Service - Pacific Northwest Research